Mortgage defaults plummet to 6-year low

Mortgage defaults in San Diego County,
which have been consistently trending downward
, have now hit a 6-year low, based on October numbers from local real estate tracker DataQuick released on Tuesday. Foreclosures basically stayed flat last month at lower-than-normal levels.

Notices of default, the first formal filing in the foreclosure process,
numbered 958 in October
, down almost 9 percent from September and down more than half from the same month a year ago. October's tally is the lowest since September 2006, when it was 872.

Foreclosures, marked by trustee deed filings,
totaled 498 in October
, up a smidge from the 497 recorded in September and down more than 25 percent from the year-ago figure.

News of declining housing distress in the county comes at a time when pre-default figures also are trending down.

About 7.4 percent of mortgages in the nation were delinquent at least one payment by the end of the third quarter, down 0.0018 percent from the second quarter and down 0.0059 percent from a year ago, reported trade group Mortgage Bankers Association.

"Delinquency rates typically increase between the second and third quarters of the year," based on the group's report, which came out earlier this month. The survey includes delinquent home loans that are a minimum of one month late but excludes loans that are in already in the foreclosure process, which DataQuick reports.

"The 90 day delinquency rate is at its lowest level since 2008, and together with the decline in the percentage of loans in foreclosure, this indicates a significant drop in the shadow inventory of distressed loans-a real positive for the housing market," said Mike Fratantoni, MBA’s Vice President of Research and Economics, in a media statement.

Banks will now have to pay to register San Diego city homes in the foreclosure process into a tracking database starting early next year. They will also have to include accurate information of the responsible contacts of such homes upon the filing of a notice of default.

Opponents of the measure questioned if the idea would pay for itself considering the number of defaults continues to fall in San Diego County. Those for the measure, which passed last week, said it's still unclear if the county is in the clear with foreclosures and that banks must be held accountable for upkeep at problem properties.